Findings among men taking a statin alongside androgen deprivation therapy
TUESDAY, March 10, 2015 (HealthDay News) — Statins may slow down prostate cancer in men who are also on androgen deprivation therapy, according to new research. The study’s findings were presented recently at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual Genitourinary Cancers Symposium, held from Feb. 26 to 28 in Orlando, Fla.
Lauren Christine Harshman, M.D., an assistant professor at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues reviewed medical data from 926 prostate cancer patients being treated with androgen deprivation therapy. About 31 percent of the men were taking a statin at the time they began prostate cancer treatment. The researchers noted that statin users were less likely to be initially diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer.
Tracking the men’s progress, researchers found that statin users had about 27.5 months of progression-free survival on androgen deprivation therapy. Men not taking statins had about 17 months of progression-free survival, according to the study. The link remained statistically significant even after accounting for other factors.
“Patients on a statin have a significantly longer time to progression,” Harshman told HealthDay.
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